What's News in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin

Lawn WateringSummer lawn watering places large demands on local water utilities. Water customers and communities can save money by practicing efficient watering. Efficient watering helps reduce energy costs for Pleasant Prairie and helps keep water rates lower for users. The following water efficient practices can help maintain a beautiful yard while conserving electricity and valuable water supplies.

• Water during the early morning weekday hours (between 4:00 and 8:00 a.m.) and over the weekend, when energy costs from We Energies are at their lowest. Watering during peak consumption hours (between 4:00 and 9:00 p.m.) will typically incur more expense for the utility and water users.• Adjust sprinklers to avoid watering impervious surfaces, such as streets, driveways and sidewalks.• Mow grass to a height of 2 ½ to 3 inches. Taller grass shades the roots and soil surface, which helps reduce the amount of water that is lost to evaporation.• Water only when needed. About one inch of water per week (including precipitation) is adequate for maintaining a healthy lawn. Use a can or rain gauge to help determine the amount of water applied by the sprinkling system and supplied by rainfall.• A good soaking once or twice a week is better than watering every day. Allowing the soil to dry between watering will allow the roots to grow to greater depths and help make turf more drought tolerant.• Avoid watering during midday hours when it is hot and sunny to prevent scalding the turf.• Automatic timers make it easy to set sprinkling systems to apply specified amounts of water during the best times of the day. Set the system to turn on for three 10-minute sessions with each session ½ hour apart to improve water infiltration and reduce runoff.